The Cat (Spider-Man: The Animated Series)

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“The Cat”
Spider-Man: The Animated Series episode
Episode no.	Season 4 Episode 43
Written by	Sean Catherine Derek
Production no.	312
Original airdate	February 8, 1997
Episode chronology
← Previous	Next →
"Guilty"	"The Black Cat"
Spider-Man (1994 animated series) Episode List

The Cat is part one of a two-part episode of Spider-Man: The Animated Series that would introduce the Black Cat.

[edit] Plot

Felicia hears her mother crying out as she is talking to someone in the living room. Felicia then watches from behind a wall and sees a mysterious man, who threatens to Felicia's mom, Anastasia, that if Anastasia doesn't give him his money, then he will reveal her connection to the infamous theft of the Ousback Fortune. Anastasia says that she will give him the money but she needs more time. Felicia walks in and demands to know what is going on. Anastasia tells her to stay away but the mysterious man reveals himself to be Doctor Octopus. Anastasia tries to call the police but Ock uses one of his tentacles to grab Anastasia's wrist and Anastasia pleads to Ock to not hurt Felicia - Anastasia will do anything Ock wants.

Spider-Man eventually gets to Felicia's home and sees Dr. Octopus holding Felicia and her mom with two of his tentacles. When Ock sees Spider-Man, he then uses his remaining tentacles to attack Spider-Man but the hero immediately. This then starts a short fight and Ock uses two of his tentacles to pull a book case down on Spider-Man. Then the police arrives and Ock goes out through a window. A moment later, Spider-Man pushes the case off of him and Felicia begs Spider-Man not to leave them alone since Ock's arrival. Spider-Man promises he won't and apoligizes for the mess that occurred during the fight. He then asks if he can clean things up, picking up a picture of Felicia's father, John Hardesky. Anastasia tells Spider-Man in anger that they don't want his help. Felicia tries to tell her mother that Spider-Man was trying to save them but Anastasia tells her that by trying to save them, he had a total mess occur, also asking Spider-Man why can't he just mind his own business. Felicia then asks why her mother was bargaining with Ock. Spider-Man states in his mind that he is surprised of just hearing that Felicia just said that Anastasia was bargaining with a villain that wants their money. As more police arrive, Spider-Man says that he will do everything in his power to help her and her mother and swings off.

As Peter Parker is at the Daily Bugle, looking through files on the Internet about the Ousback Fortune. He finds the source and it is revealed that is was a jewel theft fifteen years ago. The crime was occurred by a criminal known as the Cat and he was Felicia's father. Peter sees that in all of the photos John Hardesky is in, there's always Nick Fury with him. Later, Spider-Man goes to the toppest part of the city. Immediately, S.H.I.E.L.D. agents come and have cables catch him and take him to Fury. Fury asks what does the hero want. Spider-Man tells Fury he needs information about the Cat. Fury says that he regrets this but unfortunately, he can't help him because it's top secret. He then leaves and orders the agent to take him back to New York. But Spider-Man takes one of her waxing guns and waxed her. He then downloads the information of the Cat off a disc but as he's done, the entire place shakes. He then gets out of the place and finds that S.H.I.E.L.D. is being ambushed by flying crooks.

Back inside the facility, Fury is seen being stuck in a cage. One of the agents frees him and asks how he got in there. Fury tells him he was locked in there by an escaping prisonner and orders him to find that prisonner. After the agent is gone, Fury transforms into the Chameleon and also frees John Hardesky. The Chameleon is heard by the Kingpin that he has done a well job and will now have to bring Hardesky to where the Kingpin will take him. Hardesky then kicks the Chameleon down and escapes. The old man then gets out and Spider-Man lands near him. But the Chameleon nearly shoots down Spider-Man, stating the Cat is his prisonner. He has the hero shot off and he is forced to land with a web-parachute below. Then the Chameleon transforms into Hardesky and the Kingpin's men take the real Hardesky. Afterwards from the fight that occurred, all of the Kingpin's men who didn't escape were arrested and so was the Chameleon, who was thought to be Hardesky. Then, the Kingpin sends Ock to bring him someone.

Later at night, Peter gets the disc with the information he got from S.H.I.E.L.D. and reads about Hardesky's history about how he became the Cat. It all started in 1944 during World War II as Hardesky was a young boy who had thought he was hired by the American government to spy on Nazis. Trained as an acrobat, the boy possessed tremendous agility. He had seen Steve Rogers, sink his body in a green liquid and transformed into Captain America. Hardesky had one other ability: a photographic memory. And with it, he read the formula that created Captain America. Unfortunately, after he reported he memorized the formula, he realized that he was tricked by the true Nazis and memorized the formula that the Allied Forces created. He stated he'll never tell anyone the formula and escaped. He later grew up to be the Cat and S.H.I.E.L.D. incarcerated him to prevent the formula he knew from falling into the wrong hands. Peter then realized that Felicia's mom had changed their name. Meanwhile Felicia is kidnapped by Dr. Octopus. Later, Spider-Man arrives, wondering how she'll take the news since she's been through so much lately. But he appears in her home, seeing it is a terrible disaster and a mess.

Back in the Kingpin's building, John Hardesky tells the Kingpin no matter what the Kingpin will do to him, he will never reveal the formula to anyone. The Kingpin says that he has more persuasive methods at his disposal. Ock then appears with Felicia in one of his tentacles, introducing her to her long lost father, John Hardesky... To Be Continued...

[edit] Cast

• Christopher Daniel Barnes — Spider-Man / Peter Parker
• Jennifer Hale — Felicia Hardy
• Efrem Zimbalist Jr. — Dr. Octopus
• Roscoe Lee Browne — The Kingpin
• David Warner — Dr. Herbert Landon
• Jack Angel — Nick Fury
• Rachel Davies — Agent X
• John Phillip Law — The Cat
• Nita Talbot — Anastasia Hardy
• Steven Jay Blum — Brace Huntington

[edit] Trivia

• Jack Angel took over the role of Nick Fury for Phillip Abbot because Abbot had died earlier. Abbot's voice can still be heard in this episode in a flashback of "Day of the Chameleon".
• Even though this two-part episode introduces The Black Cat, she is not introduced until the next episode.
• This is the first appearance of John Hardesky.
• This is the episode where Felicia Hardy figures out who the Kingpin is.
• This episode introduces Captain America and the Red Skull.
• The Red Skull is first portrayed by David Warner in this episode and in the Skull's following appearances, he is portrayed by Earl Boen.